A Guide to COVID-19 Disaster Funding - U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand How to Navigate the Funding Process
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A Guide to COVID-19 Disaster Funding
How to Navigate the Funding Process
U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
New York
2020
*Note: This document will be continuously updated as information becomes availableThe Office of U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Page |2
Table of Contents
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................................... 3
Section I: Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) .......................................................................... 4
Public Assistance: Local, State, Tribal and Private Non-Profit .............................................................................. 4
Individual Disaster Assistance ...................................................................................................................................... 6
Section II: Small Business Administration (SBA) .................................................................................................. 7
SBA Disaster Assistance ............................................................................................................................................... 7
Section III: United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) ......................................................................... 9
Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) ......................................................................... 9
Letters of Support from Senator Gillibrand ............................................................................................................ 12
Grant Guide Order Form ............................................................................................................................................. 14
Casework Form ............................................................................................................................................................... 15
2|Page A Guide to COVID-19 Disaster FundingThe Office of U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Page |3
Introduction
Dear Fellow New Yorker:
COVID-19 has had a devastating effect that on our communities and our businesses
throughout our nation, but its effect is especially strong in New York State. As New York has
become the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic in the United States, I am dedicated to
providing all New Yorkers with the necessary resources to withstand the economic impacts
COVID-19 is having on our nation. This funding guide will be continuously updated with current
and relevant funding opportunities for individuals, non-profits, and small businesses. I am fighting
in Congress to ensure that every New Yorker, and every American, will be able to receive
immediate relief from this devastating epidemic.
My Senate website (www.gillibrand.senate.gov) will be continuously updated with
information regarding COVID-19 and resources on current legislation and funding as they become
available. Please do not hesitate to reach out to my office through email or by phone with any
questions or concerns regarding this current crisis.
As you move forward with any grant opportunities please contact Caitlin Rooney, my
Director of Economic Development, for letters of support, when applicable. You can reach her in
my Washington, D.C. Office at grants@gillibrand.senate.gov, or (202) 224-4451.
Sincerely,
Kirsten Gillibrand
United States Senator
3|Page A Guide to COVID-19 Disaster FundingThe Office of U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Page |4
Section I: Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA)
The job of the Federal Emergency Management Agency is to help people before, during, and after
disasters.
Public Assistance: Local, State, Tribal and Private Non-Profit
The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, as Amended
(Stafford Act), Title 42 of the United States Code (U.S.C.) § 5121 et seq., authorizes the
President to provide Federal assistance when the magnitude of an incident or threatened
incident exceeds the affected State, Territorial, Indian Tribal, and local government
capabilities to respond or recover.
The purpose of the Public Assistance (PA) Grant Program is to support communities’
recovery from major disasters by providing them with grant assistance for debris removal,
life-saving emergency protective measures, and restoring public infrastructure. Local
governments, states, tribes, territories and certain private nonprofit organizations are eligible
to apply.
Program Overview
FEMA’s Public Assistance Program provides supplemental grants to state, tribal, territorial,
and local governments, and certain types of private non-profits so that communities can
quickly respond to and recover from major disasters or emergencies. FEMA also encourages
protection of these damaged facilities from future events by providing assistance for hazard
mitigation measures during the recovery process.
The Life of a PA Grant
o The PA Program follows FEMA's common set of phases known as the Grants
Management Life Cycle:
Pre-Award: Applicants work with the Recipient and FEMA to develop the
award package for a grant.
Award: FEMA approves the award package and allocates funding.
Post-Award: Funds are released to the Recipients who must maintain,
monitor, and report upon.
Closeout: FEMA administers performance evaluation, financial and appeal
reconciliation, final reporting activities, appeal resolution and debt actions.
Post-Closeout: As necessary, FEMA performs debt collection actions, audit,
and other adjustments may continue after grant closeout.
Declaration Process
o The PA Grant Program begins with the Declaration Process when an area has
received a Presidential declaration of an emergency or major disaster. Applicants will
coordinate with the Recipient and FEMA to complete their award package during
the Pre-Award phase of the grant lifecycle.
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Roles and Responsibilities
o Multiple layers of government work in partnership to administer the PA Grant Program
once a disaster has been declared. Each entity must work together to meet the overall
objective of a quick, efficient, and effective program delivery.
o FEMA's primary responsibilities are to determine the amount of funding, participate in
educating the applicant on specific program issues and procedures, assist the applicant
with the development of projects, and review the projects for compliance.
FEMA: The federal awarding agency authorized to manage the program.
Recipients: The State, Territorial, or Tribal government that receives funding
under the disaster declaration and disburses funding to approved subrecipients.
Applicants: Entities submitting a request for assistance under the recipient's
federal award.
Subrecipients: Applicants who have received a subaward from the Recipient
and is then bound by the conditions of the award and subaward.
Eligibility
o The four basic components of eligibility are applicant, facility, work, and cost.
An Applicant must be a state, territory, tribe, local government, private
nonprofit organization.
A Facility must be a building, public works, system, equipment, or natural
feature.
Work is categorized as either Emergency or Permanent. It must be required as a
result of the declared incident, located within the designated disaster area, and
the legal responsibility of the Applicant.
Cost is the funding tied directly to eligible work, and must be adequately
documented, authorized, necessary and reasonable. Eligible costs include labor,
equipment, materials, contract work, as well as direct and indirect administrative
costs.
Project Timelines
o Projects must be completed within the Regulatory deadlines. Emergency Work must be
completed within six months; Permanent Work within 18 months. Applicants may
submit a request in writing to the Recipient for consideration of a time extension.
Cost-share
o The federal share of assistance is not less than 75 percent of the eligible cost. The
Recipient determines how the non-federal share (up to 25 percent) is split with the sub-
recipients (i.e. eligible applicants).
Special Considerations
o Applicants may not duplicate benefits with insurance and must comply with
Environmental, Historic Preservation, and Floodplain Management laws as part of the
eligibility conditions. Procurement standards in the use of contracts for acquiring
disaster-related goods and services must meet certain guidelines in order to receive
funding.
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Individual Disaster Assistance
At this time, there is no assistance available through FEMA to individuals and families
affected by the coronavirus.
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Section II: Small Business Administration (SBA)
U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) continues to help small business owners and
entrepreneurs pursue the American dream. The SBA is the only cabinet-level federal agency fully
dedicated to small business and provides counseling, capital, and contracting expertise as the
nation’s only go-to resource and voice for small businesses.
SBA Disaster Assistance
The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering designated states and territories low-
interest federal disaster loans for working capital to small businesses suffering substantial
economic injury as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19). Upon a request received from a
state’s or territory’s Governor, SBA will issue under its own authority, as provided by the
Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act that was recently
signed by the President, an Economic Injury Disaster Loan declaration.
o Any such Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance declaration issued by the SBA
makes loans available statewide to small businesses and private, non-profit
organizations to help alleviate economic injury caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-
19). This will apply to current and future disaster assistance declarations related to
Coronavirus.
o SBA’s Office of Disaster Assistance will coordinate with the state’s or territory’s
Governor to submit the request for Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance.
o Once a declaration is made, the information on the application process for
Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance will be made available to affected small
businesses within the state.
o SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans offer up to $2 million in assistance and can
provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary
loss of revenue they are experiencing.
o These loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills
that can’t be paid because of the disaster’s impact. The interest rate is 3.75% for
small businesses. The interest rate for non-profits is 2.75%.
o SBA offers loans with long-term repayments in order to keep payments affordable,
up to a maximum of 30 years. Terms are determined on a case-by-case basis, based
upon each borrower’s ability to repay.
o SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loans are just one piece of the expanded focus of
the federal government’s coordinated response, and the SBA is strongly committed
to providing the most effective and customer-focused response possible.
o For questions, please contact the SBA disaster assistance customer service center at
1-800-659-2955 (TTY: 1-800-877-8339) or e-mail disastercustomerservice@sba.gov
Eligibility
The SBA offers disaster assistance in the form of low-interest loans to businesses, renters,
and homeowners located in regions affected by declared disasters.
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Disaster Loan Use
If your insurance, and funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA),
doesn’t fully cover the disaster assistance you need, you can use disaster loans for a number
of purposes.
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Section III: United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA)
The USDA vision is to provide economic opportunity through innovation, helping rural America to
thrive; to promote agriculture production that better nourishes Americans while also helping feed
others throughout the world; and to preserve our Nation's natural resources through conservation,
restored forests, improved watersheds, and healthy private working lands.
Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP)
Program Description
o The Disaster Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (D-SNAP) gives food
assistance to low-income households with food loss or damage caused by a natural
disaster.
o The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Nutrition Service (USDA FNS)
must approve states to operate D-SNAP in a disaster area. The President must
declare Individual Assistance for the disaster area and your state must request FNS
approval to operate D-SNAP.
o If approved for D-SNAP benefits, you will get an Electronic Benefits Transfer
(EBT) card to access them. You use it just like a debit card to buy food at most local
grocery stores.
General Program Requirements
o Because of the unique needs of disaster survivors, D-SNAP uses different standards
than normal SNAP. If you would not normally qualify for SNAP, you may qualify
for D-SNAP if you had one of the disaster-related expenses below:
Home or business repairs
Temporary shelter expenses
Evacuation or relocation expenses
Home or business protection
Disaster-related personal injury, including funeral expenses
Lost or no access to income due to the disaster, including reduced,
terminated, or delayed receipt of income, for a large part of the benefit
period
In some cases, food loss after a disaster like flooding or power outages
o If you’re a current SNAP client, you can request a supplement when your state
operates a D-SNAP if you meet the conditions below:
You currently get benefits that are less than the monthly maximum, and
You have losses from the disaster.
o The supplement brings your benefits up to the maximum for your household size.
This way benefits are equal between D-SNAP and SNAP households after a disaster.
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o Current SNAP clients may also request replacement benefits for food that was lost in
the disaster and bought with SNAP benefits. Just contact your local office.
Application Process
o As a disaster survivor, you may apply for D-SNAP benefits at special sites in your
community. Before the program begins, state agencies release information through
local media and press. This can help you learn the location of application sites, their
days of operation, and the eligibility requirements.
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Letters of Support from Senator Gillibrand
While Senator Gillibrand does NOT decide which organizations are awarded grants, there are
instances in which it is appropriate for Senator Gillibrand to write a letter of support for an
application. If you wish to request a letter of support for your application, you must supply
Senator Gillibrand with the following:
1. A description of your organization
2. Summary of the application
3. a description of what the money will be used for
4. a draft letter of support
Please forward this information to the nearest regional office
Capital District New York City
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Leo W. O’Brien Federal Office Building 780 Third Avenue
11A Clinton Avenue Suite 2601
Room 821 New York, New York 10017
Albany, NY 12207 Tel. (212) 688-6262
Tel: (518) 431-0120 Fax (866) 824-6340
Fax: (518) 431-0128
North Country
Western New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand PO Box 749
Larkin at Exchange Lowville, NY 13367
726 Exchange Street, Suite 511 Tel. (315) 376-6118
Buffalo, NY 14210 Fax (315) 376-6118
Tel: (716) 854-9725
Fax: (716) 854-9731 Rochester-Finger Lakes Region
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Long Island Kenneth B. Keating Federal Office Building
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand 100 State Street
155 Pinelawn Road Room 4195
Suite 250 North Rochester, NY 14614
Melville, NY 11747 Tel. (585) 263-6250
Tel: (631) 249-2825 Fax (585) 263-6247
Fax: (631) 249-2847
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Central New York Hudson Valley
Senator Kirsten Gillibrand Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
James M. Hanley Federal Building P.O Box 749
100 South Clinton Street Yonkers, NY 10710
Room 1470 Tel. (845) 875-4585
PO Box 7378
Syracuse, NY 13261 Washington D.C.
Tel. (315) 448-0470 Senator Kirsten Gillibrand
Fax (315) 448-0476 United States Senate
478 Russell Senate Office Building
Washington, DC 20510
Tel. (202) 224-4451
Fax (202) 228-0282
TTY/TDD: (202) 224-6821
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Grant Guide Order Form
If you would like to order additional grant guides from our office, please indicate what guides you
would like to have and complete the below address information. If you have any questions, please
contact us at (212) 688-6262.
Guide
__Affordable Housing
__Home Heating and Weatherization
__Ag/ Rural Development
__Homeland Security
__At Risk Youth / Anti Gang
__Innovation and Cluster Based Economic
__Broadband Development
__Brownfields/Superfund Site Cleanup __K-12 Education and Libraries
__City Infrastructure __Lead Paint Remediation
__Faith-Based / Community Initiatives __Minority and Women Owned Business
__Fire and Emergency Services __Obesity Prevention / Nutritious Foods
__General Grants __Senior Services
__Green Energy and Clean Technology __Small Business
__Green Schools __Social Services /Community Groups
__Higher Education __Veterans Services
__Historic Preservation/Arts/Culture/Tourism __Water and Wastewater Funding
Mail to: Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, 780 Third Ave, 26th Floor, New York , New York 10017
Name:__________________________________________________________
Title:___________________________________________________________
Organization:_____________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________
City, State, ZIP:__________________________________________________
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Casework Form
If you have encountered a problem involving a federal government agency or federally subsidized
benefit that you have not been able to successfully resolve, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand’s staff of
constituent liaisons may be able to assist you in the following areas:
Employment Issues: including assistance with disability benefits, employer-provided health care
plans and COBRA, Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) benefits, pensions, unemployment benefits,
Federal and State Workers Compensation claims, and retirement-related issues.
Consumer Affairs: including assistance obtaining a home loan modification under the Making
Home Affordable Program, insurance claims, dissatisfaction with consumer products or services,
environmental regulations, and concerns regarding air quality, water or land contamination.
Immigration Issues: including issues with visitor visas, family and employment based visas, lawful
permanent resident status, naturalization, international adoptions, detention, passports, customs and
border issues, and assistance to American Citizens in crisis abroad.
Veteran Issues: including issues with VA pension and disability benefits, education benefits,
veteran burial or funeral issues, and issues regarding the VA medical centers.
IRS Issues: including connecting constituents with the Taxpayer Advocate Service to address
federal tax issues including lost or delayed tax refunds, penalty abatements, payment installation
plans, tax credits, referrals to IRS Low Income Tax Clinics and paper tax forms.
Military Issues: including issues pertaining to the Department of Defense, Army, Navy, Marine
Corps, Air Force, Coast Guard, Reserves and New York State National Guard, as well as obtaining
military records, medals and academy nominations.
Health Care Issues: including issues with Medicare and Medicaid, health insurance, insurance
providers, nursing homes, hospitals, prescription drugs, and 9/11 health matters.
Social Security: including issues with Supplemental Security Income, Social Security Disability,
survivors’ benefits, and retirement benefits.
Social Services: including issues with food stamps, HEAP (low-income heating program), FEMA
and disaster relief, and issues related to federally subsidized housing.
Please visit the “Help” section of www.gillibrand.senate.gov or call (212) 688-6262 for
further information. Please note that if you are seeking assistance with a case that involves a
lawsuit or litigation, Senate Rules prohibit the Office of Senator Gillibrand from giving legal
advice or intervening in the proceedings.
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